My name is Matteo Andrews. I’m 17 years old and I live in Harlem, Manhattan. I’m in my junior year at Harlem National High School. Right now, nothing is going well: my parents argue constantly, my sister hangs out with troublemakers—in short, the "exciting" life of a teenager. To be honest, this family situation is really affecting me; I’ve been feeling down for quite some time now. Every new argument makes the knot in my stomach grow. I try to ignore it, but it’s impossible. It’s 10 p.m., and I have to go to bed. After dining in a grand atmosphere of disputes and bickering, I returned to my room to clear my head. I could feel my heart breaking. Why do they always argue? I put on my headphones to listen to some music, hoping it would help me feel better. At 10:30 p.m., I packed my bag for the next day, set my alarm, stopped the music, and went to bed.

At 7:30 a.m., my alarm rang. I was a bit confused. I had a headache and had a strange dream. My vision was blurry, like I wasn’t fully back in reality. I could still see the faces of two people... They seemed familiar. I have a strong feeling I’ve seen them before. I got up with difficulty and headed to the bathroom for a shower. Afterward, I stared at myself in the mirror above the sink for a while. Who are they? I asked myself. I’ve seen them somewhere, but I can’t remember. Ugh, I’m thinking too much. I’ll figure it out later. I grabbed my bag, took my breakfast to go, and left the house. Usually, my parents argue in the morning over who should drop my sister off at school, but today, oddly enough, nothing. I was a bit relieved. On the way to school, I thought about the people I saw in my dream. The more I thought, the clearer it became in my mind. I gradually recognized them. We go to the same school, even the same class. But I’ve never spoken to them and barely remember their names. The cool morning air helped me focus, I guess. As I approached the school, I noticed a familiar figure. As I got closer, I recognized her. It’s a girl from my class. I stopped to watch her. She was walking slowly, shivering—it was cold, after all. She was fairly tall, a bit above average for girls. She wore glasses, had long blonde hair, and fair skin. She was far from me, so I couldn’t see her face clearly. I got closer. I still wasn’t on the side with the gate and the school, but I was close enough to see her face. That’s it—I think I remember now. Her name is... H-Hannah?

Hannah’s POV

Brrr, it’s chilly today; I should’ve worn a sweater... I keep thinking about that dream I had—it was weird. Why did I see Matteo and William in it? I recognized them quickly, though we haven’t even spoken yet. Speak of the devil... I passed Matteo near the school gate, but I don’t dare talk to him. He’s tall and easy to spot, walking with his hands in his pockets. He was wearing a white sweater with a visible t-shirt underneath, and black-gray cargo pants. His hair was a bit long. As we got closer, I could make out his face more clearly. His skin was neither too light nor too dark—he must be mixed. He’s really handsome. No wonder he’s popular with the other girls. But he remains indifferent to it all, for reasons I don’t know. I think he’s the same age as me, but he seems much more mature—so calm, with that preoccupied look on his face... it’s almost scary. I’d better just observe him first. Why did I dream about that? Well, it’ll be easy to observe them since we’re in the same class, but I have to avoid eye contact, especially with Matteo—his gaze is so intimidating... The bell is about to ring; I need to hurry. I’ll get there faster if I run. The gate is right in front of me.

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Matteo’s POV

Should I approach her? Wouldn’t that be weird? No, I’ll wait a bit longer. I’ll observe her discreetly first. // But wait—why is she running? Did I scare her by looking at her? Damn... Thud Did she just fall, or am I dreaming...? Hannah fell near the school gate. She quickly got up and glanced my way to see if I saw her. I was a little further from her but close to the school and the gate. At the same time, I pretended to tie my shoes to avoid an even more awkward situation. Then she headed inside. I could tell she was embarrassed. I’d better hurry before the bell rings. There’s one minute left before it does, and Hannah keeps giving me strange looks. Despite the crowd that formed in no time, I could still see her watching me. I must’ve scared her. Ugh, now I feel like a stalker. I need to clear this up. I’ll talk to her at recess. “Ring ring ring”; well, it’s time for class. It’s strange—I haven’t seen the other person from my dream. I can’t even remember their name... I’ve already identified one person; now there’s only one left. It’s so annoying not to be able to remember something...

??? POV

Quick, quick, quick! I’m late for the first time ever—why didn’t my alarm wake me up?! Is it because of that strange dream? Why was one of our teachers in it? Was I so out of it that the alarm didn’t work? Oh no, I need to hurry—school is still two minutes away! I can’t stop running!

Matteo’s POV

Once in class, I still didn’t see that person—they must be late or something. There are about 15 of us in the class; I didn’t bother counting since the teacher hadn’t arrived yet. We had French class. I took out my phone to pass the time and saw a news alert on the TV station’s website, posted yesterday, about how disappearances were increasing in our city. Up to six people had gone missing in unexplained circumstances. I didn’t pay much attention to it; it was probably just a way to get more viewers or attract attention. I also noticed that Hannah kept glancing at me more and more. She tried to be discreet, but I caught her. Five minutes later, they finally arrived. The other person from my dream. He’s an average-height guy with short curly hair, dark, shiny skin, a closed and slightly hunched posture, as if he wanted to make himself small. He avoided eye contact with people—you could tell right away that he was shy. When he sat down, he started looking around like he was searching for someone. Then he began to discreetly observe Hannah. It was weird. I still couldn’t remember his name... Am I really that antisocial? Two minutes later, a girl in the class exclaimed:

“Hey guys, did you see the news yesterday? Apparently, more and more people are going missing in the city. Like, six people are missing.”

“Seriously? Do you actually believe that?” a guy replied.

“For real, it’s just weird stuff!” added another.

“Yeah, they’re just trying to create a buzz.”

“What if it’s true? Like, this is happening in our own city. Doesn’t that bother you?”

“Relax. It’s probably just a story made up by the media. They love to exaggerate these things.”

Personally, this story didn’t faze me at all. I didn’t believe it, or at least there wasn’t enough proof to support it. Ten minutes later, the principal walked into the class, looking pale, accompanied by two other teachers with their heads down, ready to make an announcement that would change my perspective.